Mohd. Nafizuddin speaks on his journey in the literary field.
The master Mohd. Nafizuddin.
As we climb the staircase and walk into the house on a scorching afternoon in Tenali, a baritone voice welcomes us. We settle down on the diwan in the living room. The sheer number of books in the room leaves an impression. Books are stacked in the wooden cupboards, on the cot, the chair and in the storerooms.
“I want people to remember this place as a living library. Students and research scholars come here to refer the books. Books here cover most of English Literature,” says Mohammad Nafizuddin, known by his pen name Md. Sowjanya.
For over four decades, this untiring writer has been writing novels, short stories, grammar books, plays in English and Telugu. If the enormity of his work baffles modern writers, the diversity of his themes and literary genres might be the cause of envy for lesser souls.
He has written over 20 novels, 50 short stories, and scores of books on children literature, 25 books on grammar and translations and TV serials too.
Born in a progressive family, (his father Md. Ismail, fondly remembered as Khaddar Ismail for his loyalty to Gandhian principles) , Nafizudin says he was influenced by his teachers Konduru Veera Raghavacharyulu, G.V. Krishna Rao and Hitasri. “They taught and wrote extensively and I decided to follow their footsteps.”After passing out of Andhra University with a first class degree in M.A (English), Nafizuddin started writing stage plays in Telugu and getting them enacted by the students. Some of the popular and social plays, which were later converted into Radio Plays were, Tamasoma Jyothigamaya, Dharma Samrakshanartham, Demuda Neeku Dikkevaru. One of his popular students, A.V. Subramaniyam, went on to become a popu
lar comedian, AVS.
His first novel Vimukti was published in 1977 and immediately created a stir in the literary circles. The theme was the liberation of Muslim women and against the practice of Ghosha, the veil.
For the next three decades, Nafizuddin wrote on a variety of subjects. His Silaksharulu won the Chakrapani Award for his message on literacy. “To become a good writer, one needs to be exposed to the best writers. Since I was
an English teacher, I drew inspiration from Shakespeare, Marlowe, Dr. Johnson, O. Henry and Leo Tolstoy,” he says. His favourite book is Viswasahityamlo Vishistathalu, compilation 50 anecdotes of famous literary personalities.
Teaching English to students, most of them from Telugu Medium background, spurred him to write Common Errors, Words Often Confused. “Teaching gave me a lot of leisure and being a home bird, I took up writin
g,” he says.
Recognition soon followed. He won Jashuva Award for all-round literary services, Ambedkar Award for drama writing, Andhra Jyothi Award for the novel, Jadoo Nagar and Hasya Darbar award instituted by late Jandhyala. The VGTM UDA in
Vijayawada recently honoured him with Ugadi Puraskaram.
Nafizuddin completed his M. Phil from Madurai Kamaraj University on R.K. Narayan, his favourite author. “My cupboard looked empty without an M. Phil, so I decided to take up the task at the age of 68,” he signs off.
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